Pretoria – Three hijacking suspects were killed in a gun battle with an integrated police team led by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks), while two were arrested on Wednesday.
“An intelligence driven operation was conducted by the Hawks’ tactical operational management section assisted by Tracker Connect, Gauteng crime intelligence, SAPS highway patrol, Gauteng traffic police’s saturation unit, ICB Insurance Crime Bureau and Badboyz Security in Roodepoort, searching for hijacking suspects who are targeting VW Polo vehicles,” said Hawks spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Philani Nkwalase.
The law enforcement team discovered that the suspects were in motion, and intercepted them on the side of the road immediately after they had allegedly hijacked a Volkswagen Polo.
Nkwalase said the law enforcement team was greeted with a hail of bullets from the group of suspected robbers, which led to an exchange of gunfire that resulted in three suspects being shot dead.
“Two suspects, aged between 25 and 30, were arrested and the injured owner of the Polo who was held in the vehicle was rescued. He was taken to hospital for medical attention. Three firearms with ammunition, cellphones and heavy duty gloves were recovered,” said Nkwalase.
“The suspects will be charged with murder, attempted murder, car-jacking, possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition. They will appear in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Friday, December 10, 2021.”
The Hawks have since established through preliminary investigation that the suspects are also linked to more than 18 hijacking cases committed in Gauteng.
“The syndicate members were reportedly using a Golf GTi during the commission of crime while on previous occasions they have been using a Toyota Corolla,” said Nkwalase.
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